Immigration Blog

Monthly Archives from October 2016

If you are applying for U.S. permanent residence (“green card”), you’ll need to submit to a medical exam. This FAQ is intended to guide you through this process. Why do I have to undergo a medical exam? The purpose of the examination is to confirm that you are not inadmissible to the U.S. on public health grounds. The medical examination must be performed by a civil surgeon who has been designated by the immigration authorities […]

Representing wholesome clients with marriage-based petitions is special and rewarding. And this month, we are particularly thrilled to represent a couple, including a U.S. Citizen K and a British citizen C, who met while working for Celtic Thunder, an uber popular and uplifting Irish singing group. K & C fell in love and recently married while on tour in the U.S. Celtic Thunder celebrated the joyous occasion by performing a very special version of K&C’s favorite song, […]

Current Form Valid Until January 21, 2017 We recently shared a variety of updates regarding the new Form I-9 that was approved by the Office of Management and Budget in August. Earlier this week, it was announced that USCIS will publish the new form on November 22, 2016. Employers may continue to use the current version of the Form I-9 until January 22, 2017. After that date, any information obtained on an old Form I-9 […]

Six Attorneys and Staff from Marks Gray help the Jacksonville Area Legal Aid Group further their Pro-Bono efforts Marks Gray was proud to support JALA on Tuesday, October 11th at their Estate Intake Planning evening. This month JALA is hosting several community events to support and bring awareness to the National Pro-Bono Celebration Week being held October 23 – 29, 2016 throughout Northeast Florida. For more information about upcoming Legal Aid events, please visit their website.

The First Step to an Employment-Based “Green Card” – The Labor Certification Process (PERM) Phase 2: PERM Advertising and Recruitment Before filing the PERM Labor Certification (LC) with the Department of Labor (DOL), employers are required to complete very specific advertising and recruitment steps for the job at issue. The goal of this phase is to show that no qualified U.S. workers are available for the specific position.

As we posted in this update on September 1st, the form I-9 has been approved. This new form will include “smart features” that will be beneficial for employers to identify potential mistakes. This new form has yet to be published, but when it is released it will be valid until August 31, 2019, a 3-year period that is consistent with previous Form I-9 validity periods. USCIS will still continue to accept the old I-9 form […]